MORNING HEADLINES | Teachers from out of state could soon begin working in South Carolina more quickly under a new bill a state House committee advanced on Thursday.
The bill, which passed out of the Education and Public Works Committee 14-4, would make the Palmetto State the 14th in the nation to join an interstate agreement to not make teachers reapply for certification before starting instruction.
“We’re doing our best to fill vacancies in our classrooms with safe, sound, well-educated people, not very, very kind but untrained substitutes who are filling our classrooms,” Rep. Shannon Erickson, R-Beaufort, who leads the committee and sponsored the bill, said in a Thursday report.
Under the current rules, anyone licensed to teach in another state must apply for a South Carolina teaching certificate when they move to the state.move. Approval depends on how well their home state’s requirements align with those in the Palmetto State. Automatically accepting out-of-state licenses, supporters argue, could speed up the process and make things easier for new teachers coming into the state.
In addition, other states in the agreement would recognize South Carolina certifications in turn. This could draw some teachers away, opponents say. But the state’s growth and recent improvements in teacher salaries and working conditions ease those worries, according to Patrick Kelly, a teachers’ advocate with the Palmetto State Teachers Association.
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In recent headlines
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In recent headlines
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